Optical add/drop module

ABSTRACT

This disclosure is concerned with optical add/drop modules. In one example, he drop portion of the add/drop module is accomplished by using thin film filters or thin film interleavers. The add portion of the add/drop module uses fused fiber interleavers for the less critical stages of the multiplexing process. In a final stage, fused fiber interleavers can be placed in series. A thin film interleaver having a flattop frequency response may also be used for the critical stage where the multiplexed channels are more closely spaced. The frequency response of the thin film interleaver is relatively constant across a bandwidth of a channel while having a drop off at the channel edge to reduce cross talk.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a division, and claims the benefit, of U.S. patentapplication Ser. No. 10/724,426, entitled OPTICAL ADD/DROP MODULE, filedNov. 26, 2003, which in turn claims the benefit of U.S. ProvisionalApplication No. 60/429,253, entitled AN OPTICAL ADD/DROP MODULE, filedNov. 26, 2002. All of the aforementioned patent applications areincorporated herein in their respective entireties by this reference.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. The Field of the Invention

The invention generally relates to the field of multiplexed fiber-opticcommunication. More specifically, the invention relates to methods andapparatus for extracting and replacing channels on a wavelength divisionmultiplexed optical signal using an optical add/drop module.

2. Related Technology

Fiber-optics are increasingly used for transmitting voice and datasignals. As a transmission medium, light provides a number of advantagesover traditional electrical communication techniques. For example, lightsignals allow for extremely high transmission rates and very highbandwidth capabilities. Also, light signals are resistant toelectromagnetic interference that would otherwise interfere withelectrical signals. Light also provides a more secure signal because itdoes not emanate the type of high frequency components often experiencedwith conductor-based electrical signals. Many conventional electricalnetworks are being upgraded to optical networks to take advantage of theincreased speed and efficiency.

One goal in optical fiber networks is to increase the amount of datatraffic that can be transmitted through a single optical fiber. One wayof increasing the amount of data traffic transmitted through an opticalfiber is by using various types of multiplexing arrangements. One suchmultiplexing arrangement, referred to as Wavelength DivisionMultiplexing (WDM), is based on sending multiple signals down the sameoptical fiber where each signal is a modulated carrier beam. Each of thecarrier beams has a different frequency or wavelength than the othercarrier beams on a particular fiber. In Coarse Wavelength DivisionMultiplexing (CWDM), signals are sent using lasers with wavelengthsvarying between 1470 nm and 1610 nm in 20 nm increments. Each wavelengthrepresents a different data channel. Another example of WDM is DenseWavelength Division Multiplexing (WDM). In DWDM, channels are sent usinglasers with wavelengths that are much closer together than in CWDM.

To effectively use the channels in a multiplexed signal, the channelsneed to be extracted from the multiplexed signal. This can beaccomplished using a number of devices including optical add/dropmodules and interleavers. Optical add/drop modules extract a singlechannel from the multiplexed signal and allow the single channel to berouted to a device having need of the channel. Optical add/drop modulesalso allow for a channel to be input to the optical add/drop module(typically the channel that was dropped), and combine the channel inputinto the optical add/drop module with the multiplexed signal.

Another component that can be used to extract channels from amultiplexed signal is an interleaver. Interleavers generally dividechannels in a multiplexed signal into two different groups of channels.Thus, for a multiplexed signal with several channels, a number ofinterleavers may be necessary to extract a single channel. For example,a first stage interleaver divides a multiplexed signal of eight channelsinto two four-channel, multiplexed signals. A second stage interleaverdivides the four channel, multiplexed signal into two two-channel,multiplexed signals. A third stage interleaver divides a two-channel,multiplexed signal into two single-channel signals.

Each channel is designed with a certain bandwidth to allow the carrierchannel some tolerance in its actual frequency. One problem that arisesin such multiplexing arrangements is that when a carrier channel becomestoo near an adjacent channels bandwidth, the channel may cross into theadjacent channel and be interpreted as a signal in the adjacent channel.This is commonly referred to as cross talk.

Fused fiber interleavers have a Gaussian response. If the response offused fiber interleavers is widened, then cross talk become moreproblematic. If the response of fused fiber interleavers is narrowed,then the fused fiber cannot handle variations in the wavelengths of thechannels in a multiplexed optical signal.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF AN EXEMPLARY EMBODIMENT OF THE INVENTION

Embodiments of the invention relate to optical add/drop modules usingfused fiber interleavers and/or thin film interleavers. In one exemplaryembodiment, the optical add/drop module includes a drop portion and anadd portion in communication with the drop portion. The add portion hasa plurality of stages that each include at least one interleaver andthat are disposed together in a cascade arrangement. The plurality ofstages includes a final stage that comprises a first interleaver inseries with a second interleaver.

These and other aspects of the present invention will become more fullyapparent from the following description and appended claims, or may belearned by the practice of the invention as set forth hereinafter.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

To further clarify the above and other advantages and features of thepresent invention, a more particular description of the invention willbe rendered by reference to specific embodiments thereof which areillustrated in the appended drawings. It is appreciated that thesedrawings depict only typical embodiments of the invention and aretherefore not to be considered limiting of its scope. The invention willbe described and explained with additional specificity and detailthrough the use of the accompanying drawings in which:

FIG. 1A illustrates an example of a fused-fiber interleaver;

FIG. 1B illustrates an example of a thin film filter for dropping aparticular channel;

FIG. 2 illustrates an example of a four channel optical add/drop module;

FIG. 3 is a graphical representation of the frequency response of afused-fiber-optical add/drop module;

FIG. 4 illustrates one embodiment of an optical add/drop module using athin film interleaver at a certain stage of the module;

FIG. 5 is a graphical representation of the frequency response of theoptical add/drop module shown in FIG. 4;

FIG. 6 illustrates an exemplary thin film interleaver;

FIG. 7 illustrates another embodiment of an optical add/drop moduleusing a thin film interleaver device at a stage of the optical add/dropmodule that interleaves the most densely packed channels and using thinfilm interleavers to drop channels from a wavelength divisionmultiplexed signal; and

FIG. 8 illustrates an optical add/drop module using a ceramic sleeve tocontrol the temperature sensitivities of a 20 nm interleaver stage.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF EXEMPLARY EMBODIMENTS OF THE INVENTION

Embodiments of the present invention relate to optical add/drop modulesusing fused fiber interleavers and/or thin film interleavers. Oneadvantage is to reduce cross-talk in optical add/drop modules used inmultiplexing arrangements. This is achieved by using a pair of fusedfiber interleavers in series at a stage where the optical channels aremost dense. Another embodiment used a thin film filter interleaver atthe stage where optical channels are most dense.

Thin film interleavers are designed to have a flat-top frequencyresponse, meaning that the frequency response is essentially constant,over the bandwidth of the channel. The thin film interleaver exhibitssharp losses near the channel edge to maintain channel separation. Otherstages use fused fiber interleavers to reduce cost. Yet anotherembodiment uses a ceramic sleeve around a fused fiber interleaver. Theceramic sleeve counteracts thermal expansion and contraction of thefused fiber. In this way, thermal effects that may cause a definedcarrier frequency to shift towards another frequency bandwidth arecounteracted.

An interleaver is one type of device that can be used to achieve addand/or drop functions of an optical add/drop module (OADM). By usingseveral stages of interleavers, channels can be extracted from and/oradded back into a WDM signal. One example of a fused-fiber interleaveris shown in FIG. 1A and is generally designated as 100. The fabricationof a fused-fiber interleaver involves twisting together a pair ofoptical fibers. The twisted optical fibers are heated at the point wherethey are twisted together, causing the fibers to fuse. While still in aheated condition, the fibers are pulled and stretched to obtain thedesired optical characteristics. This fused-fiber technique can be usedin the fabrication of the interleaver 100. Fused-fiber interleaverstypically have a Gaussian frequency response.

The interleaver 100 includes an input fiber 102, and output fibers 104and 106. In this example, a CWDM signal is input to the input fiber 102and the CWDM signal includes eight channels or wavelengths: λ₁, λ₂, λ₃,λ₄, λ₅, λ₆, λ₇ and λ₈. Each λ_(n) represents a particular carrierwavelength. Although eight channels are illustrated in this example,other systems and signals may use more or fewer channels. In thisexample, the channel designated as λ₁ may be the channel disposed on the1470 nm wavelength, the channel designated as λ₂ is the channel spacedat the next adjacent 20 nm interval, or at 1490 nm, and so forth.

In FIG. 1A, the CWDM signal propagates to the fiber junction 108.Because of the way in which the fibers have been twisted, fused, andstretched, the channels are divided up into two groups of alternatingsignals by the interleaver 100. The group of channels generated on theoutput fiber 104 includes the channels λ₂, λ₄, λ₆, and λ₈. The secondgroup of channels, λ₁, λ₃, λ₅, and λ₇, are carried by the output fiber106. The output fibers 104 and 106 may be connected to subsequentoptical devices that further interleave or deinterleave the channelscarried by the output fibers 104 and 106.

The interleaver device 100 is reciprocal. This means that if light isinput at the fiber 104 and the fiber 106, then the input fiber 102 willbecome an output fiber that carries a multiplexed or combined signalthat carries the channels or wavelengths on the fibers 104 and 106.

Another component that is used in multiplexed signal applications is athree-port thin film device or a thin film filter such as the opticaldrop 150 shown in FIG. 1B. The optical drop 150 has an input fiber 152coupled to a dual fiber collimator 154. The input fiber 152 accepts themultiplexed signal that includes, in this example, eight channels λ₁,λ₂, λ₃, λ₄, λ₅, λ₆, λ₇ and λ₈. A thin film 156 is formed on the dualfiber collimator 154. The thin film 156 is formed such that it reflectsone of the channels or wavelengths on the multiplexed signal, forexample λ₁, into a reflection fiber 158. The reflected channel can thenbe used by a network device having need of the particular channel.

In a typical application, a network device may have need of variouschannels disposed on the multiplexed signal. The needed channels willthen be extracted from the multiplexed signal. One example of signalextraction is shown in FIG. 2. A multiplexed signal comprising thechannels λ₁, λ₂, λ₃, λ₄, λ₅, λ₆, λ₇ and λ₈, is the input to an inputfiber 202 of the first three-port device 204. The three-port device 204is constructed as described above such that it reflects the channel λ₁into the first channel path 206. The remainder of the multiplexed signalis fed into a second three-port device 208. The second three-port device208 causes a second channel, for example λ₃, to be extracted for use bythe network device having need of the channel. The remainder of themultiplexed signal is fed into another three-port device 210 where yetanother channel, namely λ₅, is extracted. Finally a fourth channel, λ₇,is extracted by a fourth three-port device 212. The remaining channels,λ₂, λ₄, λ₆, and λ₈, are propagated further on in the network. In oneembodiment the three-port devices 204, 208, 210, and 212 are thin filmfilters. In an alternate embodiment of the invention, the three portdevices are such that single channels pass through the three portdevices, where they are available for use by a network device havingneed of the channel, while the remainder of the multiplexed signal isreflected into another three port device.

To add the dropped channels back into the multiplexed signal for use byother components on the optical network, fused-fiber interleavers, asdescribed above, may be used. For example in FIG. 2, three stages offused-fiber interleavers are shown. The first stage 214 includes theinterleavers 216 and 218. The interleavers 216 and 218 each interleavetwo channels that are 80 nm apart. The interleaver 216 combines thechannels λ₁ and λ₅ while the interleaver 218 combines the channels λ₃and λ₇. The second stage 220 in configured to interleave channels spaced40 nm apart. Thus the interleaver 221 combines the outputs of the firststage 214 into a single signal. The third stage 222 is configured tointerleave channels spaced 20 nm apart. By cascading these interleavers,the CWDM signal that includes the channels λ₁, λ₂, λ₃, λ₄, λ₅, λ₆, λ₇and λ₈ can be reconstituted and sent further on in the network as shownin FIG. 2. Much of the time, thin film interleavers are used because ofthe Gaussian response of fused-fiber interleavers.

Another challenge in optical multiplexing arrangements is addressing thetemperature sensitivities of the equipment used in such arrangements.For example the wavelength of the DFB laser(s) that are commonly used ina CWDM system changes according to the temperature at which it isoperating, as well as with age and other factors. The change inwavelength may be as much as 15 pm/° C. This means that a particularchannel may need a bandwidth in some applications that is ±6 nm from thedefined carrier channel wavelength. Further, the interleaver deviceitself has some temperature sensitivities. As described previously, theoptical characteristics of the fused-fiber interleaver are obtained bystretching or pulling the optical fiber. Changes in temperature willcause the interleaver device to expand or contract thus changing thefiltering characteristics of the device.

A Gaussian response combined with temperature sensitivities can oftenresult in less than desirable channel separation, especially at the 20nm interleave stage 222 where the channels are more densely packed.Signal crosstalk may become a problem. To improve the channel separationat the 20 nm stage 222, an additional fused-fiber device 224 may beplaced in series with the 20 nm interleave stage 222. This improves thechannel separation because the frequency response of the additionalfused-fiber device 224 is combined with the frequency response of the 20nm interleave stage 222 resulting in rapid drop off of a signal thatapproaches the bandwidth of an adjacent channel.

FIG. 3 is a graph illustrating the frequency response of the fused-fiberdevices described above. FIG. 3 also shows a typical bandwidth of acarrier frequency superimposed on the frequency response of a fusedfiber device. The frequency response of a typical fused-fiber three-portdevice is Gaussian. The carrier channels 301, 303, 304, and 305 aredefined, in this example, by the system. The system performs best whenthe actual wavelengths of the carrier channels are close to the definedcarrier channels 301, 303, 304, and 305. The Gaussian response 302 islow loss around the center carrier channel 301. As the channelwavelength drifts away from the preferred carrier frequency, responsequickly drops off resulting in higher signal loss. For example, at theedge of the typical bandwidth 306, the Gaussian response 302 may causesignificant signal loss as compared to the loss at the preferred carrierfrequency 301. While generally small frequency shifts are tolerable solong as the wavelength output by the laser stays within a predefinedbandwidth, heavy losses of the signal power are less tolerable as theycan result in reduced distance that the network can be deployed in andhigher error rates as the signal approaches an ambient noise level.

Additional problems of interleavers and of OADMs are insertion loss andcross talk. To control insertion loss in a fused-fiber interleaverdevice that exhibits a Gaussian top frequency response, one goal is toshape the frequency response such that the insertion losses areminimized as the actual frequency drifts from the defined channelfrequency. This results in a wider frequency response. One drawback fromhaving a wider frequency response is that adjacent channels become lessisolated as the actual frequency varies from the defined channelfrequency resulting in cross-talk. To reduce cross talk problems, thefrequency response is shaped so that the losses are high as a particularfrequency on a channel drifts towards other channels. Hence the need forsome balance between controlling insertion loss and the need to reducecross-talk.

The example shown in FIG. 3 illustrates a situation where the channelsare sufficiently spaced so as to avoid some cross talk issues. Notably,the channels in FIG. 3 are spaced 40 nm apart. In a stage where channelsare spaced, for example, 20 nm apart, cross talk issues should be morethoroughly addressed.

In one embodiment of the present invention, an add/drop module exhibitslower insertion loss across the channel bandwidth of a particular fiberoptic channel while having improved isolation at a bandwidth edge. Oneembodiment uses a thin film interleaver at the final stages of the OADM,or where the channels are most densely packed. By combining the thinfilm interleaver at this stage with fused fiber interleavers at the lesscritical stages, the overall cost of the add/drop module is minimizedwhile improving the performance of the OADM. This enables the use ofcoarse, fused fiber interleavers where the channel separation is larger,such as the 80 nm and 40 nm stages, while utilizing the thin filminterleaver at the stage where the channels are most densely packed in,for example, a WDM signal.

FIG. 4 illustrates one embodiment of an optical add/drop module. Thedrop portion 401 of the OADM is first described. A CWDM signal includingthe channels λ₁, λ₂, λ₃, λ₄, λ₅, λ₆, λ₇ and λ₈, is the input to an inputfiber 402 of a three-port device 404. The three-port device 404 isconstructed such that it reflects or drops the channel λ₁ into thereflection fiber 406. The remainder of the CWDM signal is fed into asecond three-port device 408. The second three-port device 408 causes asecond channel, for example λ₃, to be extracted for use by the networkdevice having need of the channel and dropped from the CWDM signal. Theremaining channels of the CWDM signal are fed into a third three-portdevice 410 where yet another channel, namely λ₅, is extracted or droppedfrom the CWDM signal. Finally a fourth channel, λ₇, is extracted ordropped by a fourth three-port device 412. The remaining channels of theCWDM signal, namely λ₂, λ₄, λ₆, and λ₈, are propagated further on in thenetwork. Each of the three-port devices used to extract channels arethin film devices that in this embodiment are thin film filters. Oneadvantage of using thin film devices is that channel isolation orseparation can be maintained.

The add portion 413 of the OADM is now described. To add the droppedchannels back into the multiplexed signal for use by other components onthe network, fused-fiber interleavers as described above in FIG. 2 maybe used for the less critical stages, i.e. the 80 nm stage 414 and 40 nmstage 420. Cross-talk is not as much of a problem at these stagesbecause of the relatively wide channel separation.

In FIG. 4, two stages of fused-fiber interleavers are shown. The firststage 414 is set for 80 nm channel interleaving. Thus, each of the threeport interleavers 416 and 418 that make up the first stage 414interleave two channels that are 80 nm apart such as the channels λ₁ andλ₅ or λ₃ and λ₇. The second stage 420 in configured to interleavechannels spaced 40 nm apart using a fused-fiber interleaver 423. A thinfilm interleaver 424 is used for the third stage 422 where the channelsat the output of the thin film interleaver 424 are more densely packedand have a 20 nm channel separation in this example. The third stage 422is configured to interleave channels spaced 20 nm apart. By cascadingthe devices of the first stage 414, the second stage 420 and the thirdstage 422, the CWDM signal including the channels λ₁, λ₂, λ₃, λ₄, λ₅,λ₆, λ₇ and λ₈ can be multiplexed together and sent further on in thenetwork.

The thin film interleaver 424 replaces two of the fused-fiberinterleavers present in another embodiment, namely the fused-fiberinterleaver of the third stage 222 and the additional fused-fiberinterleaver 224 shown in FIG. 2. The thin film interleaver 424 includesthin film(s) 426 that are configured such that the frequency response ofthe thin film interleaver 424 is a flattop response as opposed to theGaussian response of a fused-fiber three-port device.

A typical flattop response of the thin film interleaver is shown in FIG.5. As illustrated in FIG. 5, the thin film interleaver response 501 ismore constant or flat around the defined carrier frequency 503. As thewavelength varies from the defined carrier wavelength, there is lessloss associated with the flat-top response 501 than the Gaussianresponse 502.

Because of the flat-top frequency response across the channel, thefrequency response of the thin film interleaver at the edges of thechannel can be made to have very high losses. In this way, the isolationbetween adjacent channels remains very good resulting in less cross-talkbetween the channels.

FIG. 6 illustrates one example of the internal construction of a thinfilm interleaver that is shown and designated generally as 600. FIG. 6is not drawn to scale as the concepts behind the construction of a thinfilm interleaver 600 can be better understood from this non-scaledrawing. The thin film interleaver 600 is fabricated on an opticalsubstrate 602. A first matching layer 604 is coupled to the opticalsubstrate. The matching layer 604 has an index of refraction thatprovides for an efficient interface between the optical substrate 602and the remaining thin film(s). An efficient interface for matching theoptical substrate 602 and the remaining thin films may be designed suchthat:n _(interface) ={square root}{square root over (n _(substrate) *n_(film) )}where n_(interface) is the index of refraction of the efficientinterface, n_(substrate) may be the index of refraction of the opticalsubstrate 602 and n_(film) may be the index of refraction of a thin filmcoupled to the efficient interface.

In one embodiment, four to six cavities are fabricated in the thin filminterleaver 600. A cavity 606 typically includes multiple thin filmlayers 608 and a spacer 610. The spacer may be designed in oneembodiment of the invention such that it conforms to:${FSR} = \frac{c}{2{nd}}$where FSR is the free spectral range or channel spacing, c is the speedof light, n is the index of refraction of the spacer, and d is thespacer length.

The thin films and cavities of the interleaver 600 function oninterference filter that consist of multiple alternatingquarter-wavelength-thick layer of high refractive index and lowrefractive index. Light reflected within the layers of high index doesnot shift its phase, whereas light within low index shifts by 180°.Taking into account of travel difference in multiples of2×quarter-wavelength-thickness, the successive reflections recombineconstructively at the front face of the thin film optics, producing ahighly reflected light beam for certain wavelengths. These reflectedwavelengths, however, become destructed in the transmitted path. Thethin films 608 are fabricated such that the desired interleavingfunction is accomplished. Generally, to achieve the interleavingfunction 72 to 74 thin film layers may be required. Because theinterleaver is intended to be used with a multiplexed signal comprisingvarious wavelengths, the wavelengths used to define the thin filmthickness may be a median wavelength of the wavelengths intended for theparticular interleaver device.

Returning now to FIG. 6, several additional cavities similar to thefirst cavity 606 are serially applied to the optical substrate 602 inorder to refine the frequency response to be as flat as possible. Thefinal cavity 612 has a spacer that comprises a matching layer designedwith an index of refraction intended to match the surrounding air andinterleaver device 600. In one embodiment of the invention, the finalcavity 612 has a spacer that conforms to:n _(spacer) ={square root}{square root over (n _(air) *n _(coll) )}where n_(spacer) is the index of refraction of the spacer on the finalcavity 612, n_(air) is the index of refraction of the surrounding air,and n_(coll) is the index of refraction of the interleaver device

Referring now FIG. 7, another embodiment of the present invention isshown. FIG. 7 generally shows OADM module designated generally as 700.The OADM 700 differs from the OADM of FIG. 5 in that thin filminterleavers are used to implement the drop portion 701 of the device700. The device 700 comprises a network input port 702. The thin filmdevice 704 includes a dual fiber pigtail 706. Disposed on the dual fiberpigtail 706 is a thin film 708.

The thin film 708 is fabricated such that a first group of channels isallowed to pass through lens while a second group of channels isreflected into a reflection path fiber 710 that is disposed on the dualfiber pigtail 706. The thin film 708 is designed to divide thewavelengths that comprise a multiplexed signal into two groups whereineach group comprises alternating channels. The first group of channelscomprises channels generally designated in FIG. 7 as λ₂, λ₄, λ₆, and λ₈.The second group of channels is generally designated in FIG. 7 as λ₁,λ₃, λ₅, and λ₇. This particular thin film device 704 makes up a firststage that has 20 nm interleaving characteristics. In a second stage712, a 40 nm thin film interleaver device 714 is used. In a third stage716, 80 nm interleaver devices 717 and 719 are used. By using the threestages shown in FIG. 7, a demultiplexing function that separates out theneeded channels in a multiplexed signal can be accomplished. The addportion 718 of the OADM 700 functions as described above for the OADM400 in FIG. 4. The critical stage is a thin film interleaver 720.

In an alternate embodiment the temperature sensitivities of themultiplexing add portion can be controlled by encasing the critical 20nm stage in a ceramic coupler as shown in FIG. 8. This implies that thecritical stage is a fused-fiber interleaver, which is sensitive totemperature. The ceramic coupler has the property of contracting withtemperature as the fused fiber expands. The harmful effects of theexpansion are canceled by the ceramic coupler.

FIG. 8 illustrates an optical drop module designated as 800. Thedemultiplexing drop portion 802 of the OADM 800 functions by any of themethods previously set forth above. Further the 80 nm multiplexing stage804 and 40 nm multiplexing stage 806 function as described above for theexamples of FIGS. 4 and 6. The 20 nm stage 808 includes a fused-fiberdevice 810 constructed as described previously. To control thetemperature sensitivities, the fused-fiber device 810 is disposed in andfastened to a ceramic coupler 812. The ceramic coupler has a thermalcoefficient of expansion that is opposite in magnitude to the thermalcoefficient of expansion of the fused-fiber device. In other words, anychanges in the fused-fiber interleaver 810 because of temperaturechanges, will be offset by changes of the ceramic coupler 812. Notably,other fused fiber couplers that are less sensitive to temperaturechanges may also be used in place of the ceramic coupler 812.

The present invention can extend to 2 port OADMs, 4 port OADMs, 8 portOADMs, and so forth. Further, full duplex systems may require a pair ofOADM modules to both transmit and receive multiplexed signals.

The present invention may be embodied in other specific forms withoutdeparting from its spirit or essential characteristics. The describedembodiments are to be considered in all respects only as illustrativeand not restrictive. The scope of the invention is, therefore, indicatedby the appended claims rather than by the foregoing description. Allchanges which come within the meaning and range of equivalency of theclaims are to be embraced within their scope.

1. An optical add/drop module (OADM) for use in connection with amultiplexed optical signal, the optical add/drop module comprising: adrop portion configured to extract at least one optical channel from amultiplexed optical signal; and an add portion in communication with thedrop portion and having a plurality of stages that each include at leastone fused fiber interleaver, the plurality of stages including a finalstage that comprises a first fused fiber interleaver in series with asecond fused fiber interleaver, and the plurality of stages beingdisposed in a cascade arrangement.
 2. The OADM as recited in claim 1,wherein the drop portion comprises at least one thin film device.
 3. TheOADM as recited in claim 2, wherein a thin film device of the dropportion is configured to reflect one channel of the multiplexed opticalsignal and to pass another channel of the multiplexed optical signal. 4.The OADM as recited in claim 2, wherein a thin film device of the dropportion is configured to deinterleave channels of the multiplexedoptical signal by reflecting a first plurality of channels of themultiplexed optical signal while passing a second plurality of channelsof the multiplexed optical signal.
 5. The OADM as recited in claim 1,wherein at least a portion of the OADM is configured for reciprocaloperation.
 6. The OADM as recited in claim 1, wherein one of the stagesof the add portion is configured to interleave channels that are spaceda first predetermined distance apart, while another stage of the addportion is configured to interleave channels that are spaced a secondpredetermined distance apart.
 7. The OADM as recited in claim of claim1, wherein at least one of the stages of the add portion comprises aplurality of fused fiber interleavers.
 8. An optical add/drop module(OADM) for use in connection with a multiplexed optical signal, theoptical add/drop module comprising: a drop portion; and an add portionin communication with the drop portion and having a plurality of stagesthat each include at least one interleaver, the plurality of stagesincluding a final stage that comprises a first interleaver in serieswith a second interleaver, and the plurality of stages being disposedtogether in a cascade arrangement.
 9. The OADM as recited in claim 8,wherein the drop portion comprises at least one thin film device. 10.The OADM as recited in claim 9, wherein the at least one thin filmdevice of the drop portion comprises a thin film filter configured toreflect a channel of the multiplexed optical signal while passinganother channel of the multiplexed optical signal.
 11. The OADM asrecited in claim 9, wherein the at least one thin film device of thedrop portion is configured to deinterleave channels in the multiplexedoptical signal by reflecting a first plurality of channels while passinga second plurality of channels.
 12. The OADM as recited in claim 8,wherein the drop portion comprises a plurality of multi-port devices.13. The OADM as recited in claim 12, wherein at least one of theplurality of multi-port devices is configured and arranged to drop atleast one channel of a multiplexed signal.
 14. The OADM as recited inclaim 12, wherein at least one of the plurality of multi-port devices isconfigured and arranged to drop at least one group of channels of amultiplexed signal.
 15. The OADM as recited in claim 12, wherein theplurality of multi-port devices are arranged in series.
 16. The OADM asrecited in claim 12, wherein the plurality of multi-port devices aredisposed in a cascade arrangement.
 17. The OADM as recited in claim 12,wherein the plurality of multi-port devices comprises a plurality ofthin film filter devices.
 18. The OADM as recited in claim 8, whereinthe first and second interleavers of the final stage of the add portioncomprise fused fiber interleavers.
 19. The OADM as recited in claim 8,wherein the first interleaver of the final stage comprises a thin filminterleaver, and the second interleaver of the final stage comprises afused fiber interleaver.
 20. The OADM as recited in claim 8, wherein atleast one of the interleavers of the add portion exhibits asubstantially Gaussian frequency response.
 21. The OADM as recited inclaim 8, wherein at least one of the interleavers of the add portionexhibits a flattop frequency response.
 22. The OADM as recited in claim8, wherein one of the stages of the add portion is configured tointerleave channels that are spaced a first predetermined distanceapart, while another stage of the add portion is configured tointerleave channels that are spaced a second predetermined distanceapart.
 23. The OADM as recited in claim 8, wherein at least one of thestages of the add portion comprises a plurality of fused fiberinterleavers.
 24. The OADM as recited in claim 8, wherein at least oneinterleaver of the add portion comprises a thin film interleaverincluding: a plurality of cavities, each cavity having a plurality ofthin film layers and a spacer; and a final cavity comprising a spacerhaving a matching layer designed with an index of refraction thatsubstantially matches the thin film interleaver to another medium. 25.The OADM as recited in claim 8, further comprising a ceramic sleevedisposed about an interleaver of the final stage.
 26. The OADM asrecited in claim 8, wherein the final stage exhibits isolation ofchannels at a bandwidth edge.